The defeat will leave painful memories but England's World Cup exit against Portugal may still be looked upon with some fondness by Owen Hargreaves, who appears to have finally won over the boo-boys in the stands. Fans were chanting his name after an inspirational performance and the Bayern Munich midfielder was the only England player to score from the spot in the shoot-out.

His acclaim in Gelsenkirchen was in stark contrast to the jeers that greeted him when he came on as a substitute against Hungary at Old Trafford and in England's first match in Germany against Paraguay.

"Someone told me after the game that the England fans were chanting my name and that was a brilliant thing to happen when, before and at the beginning of the tournament, there was a bit of criticism," said Hargreaves, who broke down in tears at the final whistle.

"It's brilliant how the crowd have turned and I'm very happy about that. It's what you work for as a footballer. The fans are crucial and our supporters are the best in the world and for them to chant my name is a dream come true for me. Football is a daily business, you've got to take the good with the bad, but I was just focused on doing the job asked of me."

Gary Neville joined the fans in singing the midfielder's praise. "Owen Hargreaves gave an incredible performance," he said. "I think it was amazing the way Owen and Peter Crouch came back from just six weeks ago when they were booed on to pitches with England. Everything about his performance was right."